7th ASEAN-India Ministerial Meeting (AIMMAF): Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Narendra Singh Tomar recently co-chaired the 7th ASEAN-India Ministerial Meeting (AIMMAF) on Agriculture and Forestry which was held virtually on 26 October 2022.

• The meeting witnessed the participation of Agriculture Ministers of Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Key Points of the meeting:

• The progress in implementation of various programs and activities under the Medium-Term Action Plan of ASEAN-India Cooperation (Year 2021-2025) was reviewed.
• The commitment to ASEAN-India cooperation in agriculture and forestry was reaffirmed.
• Union Minister Shri Tomar committed to enhance India's cooperation with ASEAN in food security, nutrition, climate change adaptation, digital farming, nature-friendly agriculture, food processing, value chain, agricultural marketing and capacity building.
• The meeting also welcomed the 30th anniversary of ASEAN-India relations.

About Association of Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN):

• ASEAN is officially called as “Association of Southeast Asian Nations”.
• It is a political and economic union comprising of 10-member states in Southeast Asia.
• These member states are Indonesia, Brunei, Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, Vietnam and Thailand.
• These member states promote intergovernmental cooperation and facilitates economic, security, political, educational, military, and sociocultural integration between member countries and Asia-Pacific countries.

Objectives of ASEAN:

• ASEAN work with the primary objective of accelerating economic growth, social progress as well as cultural development.
• Its aim is to promote regional peace and stability in accordance with rule of law and United Nations charter.
• ASEAN has broadened its objective beyond social and economic.